It is vindication for the ARL Commission, ARLC chairman Peter Beattie and NRL chief executive Todd Greenberg who pushed through the rules which allow them to sideline any player charged with a crime which carries a jail sentence of 11 years or more.

"This has not been a pleasant exercise for anybody, we had to make a tough decision," Beattie said.

"Our job is not a popularity contest, it's to do the right thing by rugby league."

Justice Perry dismissed de Belin's claim that the no fault rule represented a restraint of trade, saying the NRL was acting to protect its interests.

"The Court accepted that nothing short of a rule precluding Mr de Belin and others charged in the future with serious offences of a similar nature from taking the field was likely to address the clear and present danger established by the evidence," Justice Perry said.

"The court also accepted that where criminal proceedings were not finalised there would be a real danger of contempt of court if the NRL were to investigate whether the code of conduct had been breached."